Merlyn - Arthur x Female Merlin [1]

Chapter Seventy-Two: No Hope

After everything that had happened Gwen had rushed to Merlyn and Gaius and begged for their help which they had gladly agreed to give. However, in order to help Tom they had to know what was going on. Thankfully, Gwen had been granted the right to see her father whilst he was in the dungeons. Merlyn wasn't sure what to make of it all, she did not like this Tauren guy one bit and she was completely in the dark on how she was going to convince Uther of Tom's innocence especially considering he was seen with the sorcerer.

Soon enough Gwen was making her way back over to Gaius and Merlyn who were anxiously waiting for her return. They could only hope that Gwen had some miraculous answer to their predicament. But from the look of sadness on Gwen's face the young witch feared that no matter how determined they were to save Tom it wouldn't be enough.

"What did he say?" Merlyn asked.

"He said Tauren came to him at the forge, offered to pay him a fortune for his help, not to make weapons" Gwen explained. Merlyn instantly frowned. Why else would you go to a Forge? "For an experiment or something."

"What kind of experiment?" Merlyn questioned. Her mind was racing over what on earth Tauren had wanted from Tom but she couldn't pinpoint anything.

"Tauren didn't say. But he used some kind of stone" Gwen said with deep concern in her eyes. Merlyn knew what was coming next was bad. "Some kind of magic." And there it was. Merlyn knew she had felt magic and knowing Tom had been indirectly involved with the magic made everything worse. Uther hated magic; Tom had been consorting with a known sorcerer; could the situation get any worse?

~8~

With everything that had happened, neither Merlyn nor Gaius felt comfortable about leaving Gwen on her own. So this led to Gwen sleeping in Merlyn's chambers, finally allowing her exhaustion to overtake her body. However whilst she slept Gaius and Merlyn were fretting over their newly discovered news.

"I just don't get it" Merlyn said whilst she rubbed her forehead, "if you needed a forge, Tom's is one of the best in the kingdom, I get Tauren going to him for that but what I don't understand is what did Tauren need with a forge. Tom wasn't making weapons, wasn't shoeing a horse so what was it that Tauren wanted?"

"When Tom was arrested, they found gold on him" Gaius started to explain from his position opposite Merlyn at the table. "And from what Gwen was saying, Tauren's experiment bears all the hallmarks of alchemy." Merlyn's eyes widened at Gaius' words, she couldn't believe it. Alchemy!

"But alchemy's impossible" Merlyn commented, taking a pause before she looked towards Gaius questioningly. "Isn't it?"

"To change the very nature of one thing to another has defeated all who have tried" Gaius admitted. However there was more to his idea. "But if you used magic..." The implication was heavy.  To change the nature of something, to create something out of something else when it shouldn't be possible. And all to due to a stone.

"Do you think that's what woke me?" Merlyn questioned.

"It is possible, I suppose" Gaius replied. Merlyn was now certain that was what had woken her. She knew the feeling had been magic based and now it had been confirmed to her. Tauren was using magic.

"What-"

Suddenly, the powerful tug of magic occurred again and Merlyn heard the ringing that accompanied the feeling just like it had only the night before. However, as quickly as it had appeared the ringing and tug of magic vanished.

"Merlyn what is it?" Gaius asked as his apprentice fell silent. For a moment longer Merlyn did not say anything, she explained nothing as she stayed perfectly still trying to find the magic again but she couldn't find it.